ANCHORAGE, AK – Coastal Villages Region Fund (CVRF) has opened the application period for its sixth round of the People Propel® Program, which will help hundreds of people in Western Alaska acquire newer, safer, and more efficient boats, motors, and other gear.

The program, first launched in 2013, offers low-cost (40 percent discount off retail) products such as safety gear, ATVs, snowmachines, boats, outboards, and nets to residents of its 20 member communities.

“Now in its 6th round, People Propel® has turned into one of Coastal’s largest, most popular programs,” said Bob Marquez, CVRF’s Products/Services Manager. “It provides a pathway for our community members to purchase quality equipment at a competitive price point, and leverage CVRF’s buying power to achieve an even greater value.”

The last round of People Propel® took place in the spring of 2016. A total of 177 residents chose to participate in the program, taking advantage of over $600,000 in funds offered by CVRF. Since the inception of the program, residents of Western Alaska have purchased over $11.7 million worth of equipment. With the 40% discount offered by CVRF, those purchases have cost participants just over $6.9 million. $900,000 is available for this current round of the program

Only the residents of CVRF’s 20 member villages are eligible to participate. For more information about the People Propel® program, including application instructions and guidelines, please contact the People Propel® hotline at (888) 983-7155 or PeoplePropel@coastalvillages.org.

“People Propel® is one of our most successful programs, and only continues to grow,” said CVRF’s Executive Director, Morgen Crow. “It is a great example of the way our organization partners with people from across our 20 communities to invest in equipment and tools that will contribute to the ability to generate income and resources. As traditional government funding becomes more scarce, it is critical that we focus on efficient and effective programs that will leverage the most out of every dollar, and build the economic independence of our region.”